


Code Name Gravilathe'lin

by enigmalea



Series: Fen'Harel's Elvhen Tales [1]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Agents of Fen'Harel (Dragon Age), Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Dark, Alternate Universe - Spies & Secret Agents, Dark Fen'Harel (Dragon Age), Dark fic, F/M, Fairy Tale Retellings, Fen'Harel (Dragon Age) Being an Asshole, I Blame Tumblr, Rough Sex, Solas is Fen'Harel (Dragon Age), Spies & Secret Agents, Tender Sex, Vaginal Sex, dub con
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-28
Updated: 2019-05-28
Packaged: 2020-02-16 15:00:38
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 14,330
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18693817
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/enigmalea/pseuds/enigmalea
Summary: A RETELLING OF LITTLE RED RIDING HOODEllana Lavellan, Resistance thief and assassin code name Gravilathe'lin, was sent on a mission of unparalleled importance and danger: to retrieve the Orb of Fen'Harel and to prevent the shemlen and Fen'Harel's agents from claiming its power. The Orb contained a power that was both the hope of the Elvhen People and the potential destruction of the world, the power to rip down the Veil and restore to the People their former magical glory.Her mission a success, Gravilathe'lin found herself being chased by an unknown pursuer on her way to her rendezvous. Could she trust the stranger at the end of her journey? Or was he really an Agent of Fen'Harel?Please be sure to read the beginning notes before reading this work.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This story was inspired by [this](https://spell-struck.tumblr.com/post/184497958958/big-bad-wolf) awesome fanart by spell-struck. However, that art is adorable and cute, and what I came up with is neither of those things. I do hope you enjoy it, though.
> 
> * * *
> 
>  **POTENTIAL TRIGGER WARNING:** This work has some **dark** themes and eventually leads to some sex that is by its very nature dub con. Both parties involved are hiding their true identities and are part of opposing factions in a war. Neither of them are very good people, and this definitely isn't a healthy fling. If this could be triggering for you, please don't read. Keep yourself safe.
> 
> * * *
> 
> As always:  
> Bits of Elvish from either [FenxShiral's](https://archiveofourown.org/users/FenxShiral/pseuds/FenxShiral) [Project Elvhen: Expanding the Elvhen Language](https://archiveofourown.org/works/3553883?view_full_work=true) or [Project Elvhen: An Elvhen Lexicon](https://archiveofourown.org/works/3719848?view_full_work=true)  
> Lesser known bits of elvish are translated in the endnotes.
> 
> * * *
> 
> **follow me for updates:** [ao3 (click subscribe)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/enigmalea/profile) ☆ [tumblr](http://enigmalea.tumblr.com) ☆ [twitter](https://twitter.com/enigmaleaDA)  
>  **prompt me:** [how to](https://enigmalea.tumblr.com/post/185117840754) ☆ [submit](https://enigmalea.tumblr.com/ask) ☆ [read on tumblr](https://enigmalea.tumblr.com/tagged/my-drabbles) ☆ [read on ao3](https://archiveofourown.org/works/19825843)
> 
>  **join me @:** [The Hanged Man Discord](https://discord.gg/U4Y5uCR) for DA fanfic readers, writers, and betas! (Please note the server is NSFW and 18+ only.)

She pulled the dark red cloak, heavy fabric the color of rich oxygenated blood, tighter around her as she crouched precariously on a tree limb. The limb swayed with her movement. The cloak offered extra protection against the quickly falling temperature and helped to conceal her parcel. The Orb was heavy, its weight pulling on the strap which crossed her body, resting heavily against her thigh. Careful not to make any noise, she tossed back her hood, shifted to rest against the tree's trunk, and strained her senses for any sign of her pursuer.

There were none, but that meant nothing.

Four times, she'd thought she'd lost him (it?), and four times she'd seen or heard it again, just when she'd relaxed and slowed down. It could not be a shemlen; she'd evaded them hours ago, almost as soon as she'd had the Orb in hand. Their inferior sight in shadows and her superior command of the art of stealth had allowed her to triumph. Her current pursuer(s?) must be Elvhen. She wasn't foolish enough to believe it was _Him_ , no matter the fact she could have sworn she'd seen six red eyes peering at her from the darkness once.

She checked the security of the Orb in her satchel. Almost absently, her hands brushed over the hilts of her twin daggers, also hidden beneath her cloak; they were a comfort to her. She exhaled slowly, softly, willing the tension from her shoulders. She seemed to have lost her pursuer. Taking to the trees had worked.

Her soft-leather booted feet hit the grass without a sound, and she took a moment to orient her position. She had a rendezvous to make and the deadline was quickly approaching. She took a few tentative steps toward the north and only relaxed when it became clear there really wasn't something behind her.

Ellana lost track of how long she walked, her mind simultaneously wandering and hyper-alert. There was something _wrong_ though she couldn't quite place it. In spite of the eerie feeling which provided her only company, Ellana cheered at the sight of the softly trickling stream which was supposed to serve as the guide for the last leg of her journey.

She stopped and knelt at the stream, filling her water skin, and took a long drink, before filling it again. There was some movement in the corner of her eye, and her hand flew to her dagger as she turned. A frog stared at her silently, black eyes large and unblinking.

_Silently._

She hooked the water skin back to her belt as she stood, eyes darting around the woods. That was the problem. It was silent. The trickle of the stream was only joined by the occasional soft rattle of a breeze through the limbs. There were no bird calls, no insects buzzing, no squirrels chattering, or deer snapping twigs. There were no fennecs barking or wolves howling. It was as if every creature in the woods was holding its breath in anticipation… or in fear of the evil which lurked within.

The soft growl surrounded her in a way it shouldn't be able to for its low volume and her heart began to pound. Training temporarily overcome by fear, her eyes darted haphazardly around the woods, lingering on a slight movement of brush a few feet away. _There_. Another growl followed the first, and there they were, unmistakable: two red eyes feet above the height of a man. They blinked, slowly, and as they opened, they were joined by another pair… and then a third.

 _Fenedhis_.

She ran.

She ran without direction or thought, without consideration for the thorns grabbing at her clothing, scratching at her ankles, tearing at her arms. She put a hand in front of her face to push limbs out of the way and ran, instinctively blending with the shadows to become invisible. It wouldn't matter. He could find her anywhere. He was a God. She had failed. She would die. The world would be destroyed.

She ran until her lungs were ready to burst and her legs were jelly until she could no longer run… and then she kept going. She wasn't foolish enough to believe he would give up his pursuit. Her only hope to prolong her survival was to keep the pursuit interesting.

She wove through the woods, keeping the stream on her right, close enough she could hear it, but not always within sight. Always, the eerie silence traveled with her, a reminder the Dread Wolf was close on her heels.

Suddenly, the forest erupted into a cacophony of noise, of insects and birds and frogs, and Ellana stumbled as her legs gave out with her surprise. She gasped for air, confusion contorting her features. This didn't make sense. Unless it was a trick.

Even so, she had to rest.

Her legs practically gave way as she tossed the hood of her cloak back and took a seat on the forest floor. She wiped her sweaty forehead with her gloved hand, shoving the inky bangs plastered to it out of the way and fumbled for her water skin. She drained it quickly and cursed the fact she'd ventured this far from the stream. Ellana's hand moved to the satchel and rested against the rounded curve of the Orb within its confines. Still safe.

She stood slowly, her legs wobbling slightly as she began the last few steps of this leg of her journey. The edge of the forest was in sight, and her deadline for her rendezvous with the other Resistance operative loomed. He would be waiting to escort her to Starkhaven where she would be handed off to another guide, and then another and another until she eventually reached the Arlathan Forest, the ancient seat of Elvhenan.

The forest had come to life with familiar sounds and in spite of herself, Ellana found herself relaxing. It all could have been her overactive imagination; Commander Istimaethoriel had told her it would be a problem. The woods ended abruptly and there, a few feet away, an Agent of the Resistance stood, waiting.

He was tall for an elf but projected an unassuming nature. His bald head shone in the quickly fading dusk light, the only striking feature one noticed at first glance. Even his clothing was unassuming - an ivory tunic layered over a dark green undershirt was topped by long green robes, belted in place with a wide green leather belt layered over dark green leggings and Elvhen foot wrappings, the jawbone of some unidentified creature hung around his neck. He had no vallaslin… but not all of them did; in fact, not all of the Resistance members were Elvhen. A pack and satchel rested to his side, a tent already pitched and fire burning its welcome; all awaiting her arrival. A serene, almost bored expression was plastered onto his face.

"Andaran atish'an. My code name is Solas if there are to be introductions," he said in a deep baritone which shocked her for some reason. "I am pleased to see you still live."

In spite of his demure appearance and the fact he appeared to be unarmed (though Ellana was not foolish enough to believe that; he was likely a mage), her left hand fell to her satchel protectively; her right rested on the strap. "Gravilathe'lin," she answered hoarsely.

"That explains the cloak; an odd choice for someone who wishes to remain unseen," Solas said with a quirked eyebrow. She didn't reply. The Commander had assigned her codename based on the fact she could disappear from most people's perception in spite of wearing red… and the fact she'd eluded capture on her first mission by covering herself in her slain partner's blood and faking her own death. This man did not need to know any of that. "You can relax, da'lan. I am here to show you to Starkhaven."

His words caused her to tense more; she wasn't sure she could trust him. He could easily be an Agent of Fen'Harel; perhaps he was her pursuer all along. The eyes and growls could have been illusion magic and not shapeshifting at all. The risk was too large to take when an artifact which could save or doom the world was at stake. She shifted slightly but did not reply.

"Rogir. Shalir. Harillir," he said softly. _We endure. We protect. We resist._

It was the passphrase she'd been waiting on. Different for each leg of the journey, she'd had to memorize them to ensure the safety of her mission. The Commander had drilled them into her.

She exhaled softly and relaxed. "We're not safe here. I was being pursued and-"

"It's okay. I killed him," Solas interrupted.

"But how?"

"He passed you at some point and emerged from the woods about a half an hour ago; I believe his intent was to head you off, but he didn't know about me. We fought and I killed him. I was the superior mage," he explained. He shifted, moving to tend the fire and took a seat.

"He was a mage?" she asked. "That explains…" _what I saw_ "things." She sat next to him and shifted so that the Orb rested in the space created by her crossed legs.

Solas nodded, not asking for more explanation. She was grateful. She didn't want to tell him she'd thought she'd seen Fen'Harel, not when he was already calling her "da'lan". She didn't need him wondering why she was chosen for this mission. He shifted, reaching for his pack, and produced two apples, offering her one. "So, you have it then? The Orb?" he asked. She nodded. "Do we know how the shemlen had it and what they intended to do with it?"

She took the apple, her stomach rumbling softly. She'd last eaten well before dawn and now that the adrenaline was fading, she was starting to become aware of her hunger and exhaustion. It had been a very long day. "Intelligence suggests they just _found_ it; that they'd been looking for it for nearly as long as Fen'Harel himself. As for why they wanted it – I'm sure the mad magister leading them wished to install himself as a God, the world be damned to the Void and back."

He nodded in consideration, taking a bite of his apple and motioning for her to do the same. Once she took a bite, she couldn't seem to slow down, her ravenous hunger overcoming all of her good manners. She seemed to inhale the apple, devouring it almost completely in three large bites. She tossed the apple core away, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand and continuing to chew noisily. It took a moment for her to realize that Solas was watching her with wide gray eyes, chewing on a bite of apple slowly.

"Ir abelas, da'lan," he said holding out the apple which was only missing two small bites. "I had intended to have dinner ready when you arrived, but the fight distracted me from my duty."

"Re san," she replied, though she took the apple and began eating anyway.

"So, tell me, do you prefer fish or squirrel?"

She chewed and swallowed, now a bit more in control of her hunger now that she'd gotten the first apple in her system. Still, her stomach rumbled in response to his question. "Food," she laughed.

He nodded. "Well, fish it is; it's faster. Wait here. You can tell me all about the daring theft and journey which left you so famished once we're done eating."

 

* * *

 

It had taken Solas mere minutes to round up enough fish to feed them both. Ellana had watched in fascination as sparks had danced from his fingertips through the water of the stream and fish had floated lazily to the top. He'd thrown off his layers of clothing (except for his leggings) and jumped into the river almost eagerly to collect the stunned fish.

He'd walked around shirtless and heedless of the frigid air as he'd collected branches to carve into spits and she worked to kill and gut the still stunned fish. If she nearly sliced open a finger multiple times because she was distracted by his half-naked form, she never mentioned it. As the sun ducked behind the horizon, he'd joined her, fully dressed and they'd eaten in silence.

Ellana was still picking at the bones of the final fish as Solas let out a sigh and leaned back to stretch out his long legs. "Before you tell me all about your heroic heist, tell me how someone like you ended up as part of the Resistance."

"Someone like me?" she asked, her left eyebrow raising slowly.

"Someone so young, da'lan," he clarified.

She couldn't stop the corners of her lips from tugging up slightly. "I'm not so young, hahren," she answered, her tone turning a bit sarcastic on the final word. "But to answer your question, I was born into it."

"You were born into resisting Fen'Harel?"

"Fen'Harel and men like him who think they have the right to make decisions that affect the entire world," she replied with a nod.

Solas shifted a bit, turning so that he could see her better in the firelight. It was getting dark enough his pupils were beginning to shine in the low light, and they reflected a violet shade she'd not noticed before. It was much more pleasant than the glowing red eyes she'd seen in the shadows all day long. "Men?" he asked. "I thought your people believed Fen'Harel was a God."

"My people?" she asked the words tasting heavy and bitter on her tongue. He motioned generally toward her vallaslin, and she tensed slightly. "My people acknowledge he – like all of the Evanuris - is a mage gone mad with power who wears a cloak of divinity to excuse his actions even while condemning the other Evanuris for doing the same, much like mortal shemlen nobles. He has no right, none, to tell us we would be better off without the Veil, and he has no right to choose for the people of Thedas whether the Veil should stay or not. He had no right to erect it in the first place. Tell me, what is it _your people_ believe?" She barely stopped herself from calling him a flat-ear which shocked even her. She wasn't usually so caught up in the politics of Dalish versus city elves, but this man had managed to get under her skin.

"My people are not so nearly as philosophical," Solas replied with a shrug. "The chaos it causes will be too great to be justifiable; therefore, the Veil must not fall."

"Sad," she retorted, "that your people don't feel passionate enough about an idea to fight for it."

"Sad that someone so young is being raised in a Resistance," he countered.

"I'm 27," she said with a frown.

"A mere child," he sighed, "raised on blood and death and resisting for the sake of resisting."

"And yet, here we both are, with a common goal. Who cares what our motivations are if the end is the same?" The smirk on his face was infuriating, but the look in his eyes was appraising, and Ellana couldn't help but think about how he'd looked half-naked and dripping wet. She pressed her lips together thinly, anger coursing through her at the lack of response from the man before her.

His eyes narrowed slightly, "and you truly believe that? That the end justifies the means?"

"I suppose it depends on the end, but since, in this case, the end is preventing the Orb from falling into the hands of madmen, then yes," she retorted.

There was a long stretch of silence and his demeanor seemed to shift as he changed the subject; almost as if he were releasing the entire previous discussion away from him. "Tell me of your daring theft," he prompted.

"Not much to tell," she yawned. "I awoke at zero-four-hundred and traveled the last 10 miles to the shemlen compound. I scaled the southeastern wall-"

"Don't be so clinical," he sighed. "This isn't a debriefing. Tell me a story."

"I- I- well, I knew the guard rotation, so I scaled the southeastern wall because it was unguarded, and I proceeded to the target-"

"You don't know how to tell a story do you?" he asked, his voice suddenly sad.

Ellana shifted a bit uncomfortably. She'd heard stories, of course, but she was awful at repeating them. So much of her childhood had been focused on being the _best_ , it didn't leave much time for fun. "I… I'm not… good with stories."

"What about dreams? Do you have dreams?"

"Of course. Everyone has dreams, Solas," she sighed.

"Tell me one of yours," he prompted.

Her mouth ran dry, her jaw clenched. She wasn't there to entertain him. She had a job to do; _they_ had a job to do. "I think I'm ready to sleep. I had an early morning."

"Of course. Good night, Gravilathe'lin."

 

* * *

 

She'd crawled into a bedroll fully dressed, the Orb in her satchel still wrapped protectively around her body, and slept like the dead, at least for the first few hours. Then, she'd begun to dream. Something was chasing her, large and dark and ominous, and suddenly, it stopped; the sky lightened, the _thing_ chasing her was no longer there. She was at peace, calm. She was pretty sure Solas was in the distance, watching.

She awoke the next morning rested and yet somehow disturbed. The man had seemed to enter the Fade and _shaped_ it and very few mages were capable of that. Or had he? Maybe the whole thing had been a dream.

Ellana was silent as they packed up camp, and they sorted out who would carry what. They were both silent for the first few miles of the journey, and then, out of nowhere, Solas had begun speaking. He talked about wandering the world to find new areas to explore in the fade and his adventures in ruins. He explained how he made friends with Spirits and learned from them. He told her about the wondrous magic and history he'd discovered, and as he spoke, she realized he had actually been the one in her dreams. She'd refused to acknowledge it, not knowing the implications.

She let him speak until he seemed to lose his momentum, and then she prodded him further, asking questions to show she was interested. He wove tales of nomadic existence and most of it spent alone. He told her about a Dalish clan he'd met who hadn't been friendly, and about a pack of Qunari mercenaries who had shared their own rations when his had ran low. In spite of her instinct screaming at her to not trust him, to be wary and on guard, she couldn't help but find him fascinating.

They ate lunch on the move, sharing berries and fruit they picked along the way and a few nuts Solas had in his pack. They only paused when their water skins became empty. They made good time and by nightfall, the pair had made their way to their first town, so small it rarely appeared on maps. That didn't matter; all that did matter was there was a tavern which would serve elves, and Ellana couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief when she first sat.

The stew and flatbread were hot and filling (even if she didn't know what it was made of), and the ale was cold and soothing. Her eyelids became heavy as they sat in silence, and she finally cleared her throat and said, "I awoke yesterday before dawn. The air was chilled, and the grass was dewy damp. I only had 10 more miles to go before I reached my destination, and I had a tight deadline to make - especially since I didn't know what trouble I may run into."

Solas turned his violet-gray eyes to her and his lips turned up into a half-smile before he hid it by taking a drink from his tankard. She paused, quirking an eyebrow at him, and wondering if he didn't want to hear her story now. "Please, continue," he prompted, and she nodded.

"It was well after sun-up when I arrived at the compound - strategically not the best time. I could have continued in the night and attempted to take the… target… before the sun rose, but I had been delayed by a storm a couple of days ago, and I was simply too tired to be useful in a fight. So, although this wasn't the _best_ situation to be in, it was better than dying because I was too exhausted to move quickly. I ate breakfast while I watched the guards' movements. Very little had changed since our original intelligence; they were so confident in their security they saw no need to alter their patrol patterns or rotations- which meant just before noon I had a ten-minute window to scale the wall and drop down onto the other side without being detected." She stopped in her story to take a drink and she moved, shifting the way the strap of the satchel laid across her body so that the weight of the Orb was pulling on the other shoulder.

"I wouldn't mind sharing the burden of carrying that," Solas offered.

She narrowed her eyes at him, the ale lowering her ability to hide her suspicions. "You're not supposed to offer that," she said.

He put his hands up as if dismissing the idea or surrendering to her statement and then motioned, "finish your tale. I'm invested."

She sighed heavily. "The palisade was 30 feet high and made of slate, and thankfully it wasn't raining. The mechanical grappling hook our engineer made me functioned perfectly, allowing me to scale the wall in seconds and I managed to cross the battlements undetected after hiding the grappling hook in a shipping crate which had been left unattended. From there I blended into the shadows, following the stairs down into the main courtyard. It is relatively easy - as one of the People - to blend in unnoticed. Use your hair to shield part of your face - but make sure your ear tips are showing - keep your eyes down, only speak when spoken to, walk quickly and look busy and scared. I made my way to the kitchens, grabbed a serving tray, and walked right in through the servant's quarters."

"Hiding in plain sight?" Solas asked, leaning closer to her, "encouraging your target - your enemy - to underestimate you in order to gain an advantage? Brilliant strategy. Who taught it to you?"

Ellana couldn't help it, her nose curled up in disgust, her frustration at his belief she was simply _trained_ to be this good making itself known. "No one," she snapped. She lowered her voice so that no one could overhear. "Look, there's only so much training we have time for in the Resistance, and those of us who do this for a while and survive, those of us who are _really_ good at it - like me - we just… have talents and instincts that others lack."

He smiled at her, a genuine smile, perhaps the first one she'd seen from him, and his gaze turned appraising, "your list of good qualities continues to grow: intelligent, talented, instinctual."

"Are you keeping a tally?"

"Just wondering if you have any bad qualities to make an appearance, and if so, when they will," he commented. She wasn't imagining it, then, the heat in his gaze, the way he was moving ever so closer to her. Her stomach gave a little flop and unbidden images of him shirtless and wet from his dive in the stream came tumbling into her head. The sudden rush of desire was heady and unexpected, and she swayed forward to kiss him right there.

She steeled herself, the weight of the Orb a reminder of her mission, and she forced herself to put distance between them. "You mean my rudeness and distrust don't count? The fact I smell from three days on the road? What about my ability to kill without flinching?"

"All understandable given the circumstances, lethal'lan. You have hardened your heart to complete the tasks you've been given, and you've performed admirably. You have achieved your goal and have the… your target," Solas replied.

The sound of him calling her ' _lethal'lan_ ' thrilled her more than it had any right to. It wasn't as if she was starving for attention or lacking a clan, but there was something about the way he said it; Solas was not a man to count many as his equal, but he was doing so with her. "I do," she said with a nod.

"Continue your story," he prompted.

"Oh, right," she frowned trying to remember where she left off and took her final sip of ale. "So, I'm hiding as a servant, and I walk right up to where they're keeping the Orb - northwestern tower, fourth floor, in a research room. Why wouldn't you lock up an artifact which could cause Armageddon? The researcher hadn't left in days and his lunch was being delivered, so I slipped right in with the tray without question. I set it down on the table and slit his throat while I punctured his kidney. The artifact was simply sitting on the table, so I picked it up and dropped it into the satchel."

She massaged her shoulder lightly, distracted from her tale because of how sore it was. "Getting back out was harder than getting in. There was only one entrance to the room, but there was a window, and I had a second grappling hook. I used that to get out but was spotted by some guards and that's when things became… not great… because they sounded the alarms. I had to jump from the side of the tower to the palisade. Thankfully, they hadn't done a great job clearing the forest on that side of the property, so I was able to jump from the palisade to a tree limb. By then, though, their guards had gotten their shit together, so it was an all-out sprint through the shadows of the woods. Thankfully, I'm nearly invisible to shemlen - yes even with the cloak," she answered before he could interrupt, "so I lost them easily. But something - er, someone - else was chasing me."

Solas seemed to be enraptured by her tale. "What? Who?" he whispered.

 _Fen'Harel._ "I… I don't know, I never saw it- him. The mage you killed, obviously, but in the woods, it was hard to tell who or what it was, and I think he was using illusion magic. I couldn't lose him on the ground, but I managed to lose him for a little bit when I took to the trees again."

"To the trees?" he asked skeptically.

"Yes, to the trees. I ran tree limb to tree limb. I think it disoriented him."

"No one has been able to do that since Elvhenan," he challenged.

"I can."

The waitress appeared at the table one hand on her hip plump. "Will ye be wantin' anythin' else, then?" she asked.

Ellana nearly asked for another ale, but Solas shook his head. "Nothing but a room for my wife and me, if you've still got one, and a hot bath." _Wife?!_ That lie had come far too easily, and so had the hand that he'd placed over hers, and the smile he'd given the women. The hair stood on the back of Ellana's neck as she was suddenly reminded that although this man seemed to be a Resistance agent, he could be anyone.

"Ye've got the last one, then luv," she replied reaching between her bosom and producing a key. Solas slid her the coins for their meal and the room, and the woman sauntered away with a sway of her hips which might have been enticing if Ellana weren't concentrating so much on the warmth of Solas' hand over hers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _re san_ \- it's okay  
>  _Gravilathe'lin_ \- little red cloak, derived from _vilathe_ (cloak), _gra (red)_ , and the diminuitive _-lin_ meaning little.


	2. Chapter 2

The water was hot and the steam rolled off it and into the air of the room caressing her skin and making it sticky; it was probably counterproductive and she probably should have waited until it had cooled some, but the allure of heat to relax her aching muscles was too good to ignore. Solas had insisted she bathe first as he could clean and heat the water with his magic, and Ellana was not going to argue with him. He'd also insisted on cleaning her armor for her.

She twisted the strap of the bag around her wrist, feeling the tug of the Orb's weight against the fabric. She half expected the mage to insist she hand it over too, but he'd not said a word as she'd undressed behind the partition and handed over everything but the Orb and her daggers.

Ellana still couldn't get a good read on the man. He was attractive - Creators damn him to the Void and back, but he was attractive. The curve of his lips, the steamy look in his eyes, the broadness of his shoulders and the severe cut to his waist were damn near distracting. The tunic hid a lot, but she'd seen him bare-chested and if Ellana had to guess, she'd place money on the fact that Solas could put up a damn good fight against her barehanded, without the use of magic… which made him doubly dangerous.

As if he could follow the train of her thought the man cleared his throat on the other side of the partition. "Your armor, my lady," he said, and a moment later her breeches and tunic were tossed over the top where she could reach them. The sun was setting outside, and it was starting to get dark. From nowhere, the candles flickered to life and so did the fireplace. The ease with which he commended the elements unnerved her. It had seemed to take him no effort at all. She'd heard no spells or movement of his staff.

"First, I'm your wife, now I'm ‘my lady’?" she called playfully. She could hear his movement in the room, he seemed to be pacing, but as she spoke, he stopped. She could almost envision the slight shrug of his shoulders and maybe a faint blush; although she doubted the blush could possibly be real.

"It was the easiest way to procure a room for both of us without raising eyebrows," he explained. "I apologize if it seemed… too forward."

"And why did we need to share a room?" she asked as she closed her eyes and sunk deeper into the water. A soft moan escaped her unbidden and she could only hope Solas hadn't heard it.

The floorboard creaked as he shifted his weight and the silence hung in the air. She would bet just about anything that he _had_ heard it. "Is it not my duty to protect you until Starkhaven?" he asked. "How can I protect you if we're not in the same room?"

"I can protect myself. You're merely an escort," Ellana challenged.

"That's not how my mission was explained," Solas replied. "I could… get another room, but it might-"

She laughed, in spite of herself. "It's fine, Solas." She sighed and finally let go of the strap, dunking under the water and scrubbing her scalp quickly. The breached the surface of the water as quickly as possible, wiping her eyes and reaching for the strap of her satchel as if her life depended on it; to be fair, it very well could. "I was just surprised you wished to share a bed with me is all."

On the other side of the partition, the mage seemed to choke. "We're not… that wasn't… you're taking the bed and I'm sleeping on the floor."

"That so?" she asked.

"That is so," he asserted.

She couldn't help but smirk a bit. He was mostly talk and very little follow through, which was somewhat disappointing if she really thought about it. "Oh good, _hahren_. I was concerned for my virtue," she teased.

She heard him inhale sharply and go very still. "No need for concern. I would never… well, not never… that is to say… you don't have to worry about me… doing anything… without your consent." Ellana couldn't stop laughing now at the sound of him being so flustered. She pulled herself from the tub, dropping the strap of the bag and peering around the partition at him. He sat on the bed, as she imagined, back ramrod straight, face slightly pinkened from embarrassment. "You're… teasing me, aren't you?" he asked as his eyes met hers.

She bit her bottom lip, trying to conceal her grin and failing. "Maybe. Just a little," she answered. She was still naked, damp skin dripping onto the wood floor. She should have grabbed a towel. "It's good to know I'm on your 'not never' list, though. You're an attractive man."

"Am I?" he asked quirking an eyebrow at her. "Surely, next to your beauty, I paint a plain picture, indeed."

"Smooth talker," she replied. She ducked behind the partition and toweled off quickly, pulling her freshly magically cleaned armor on with some relief. She lifted the bag over her head onto her shoulder and emerged fully dressed minus her cloak and boots. "She's all yours."

"Is she?" the mage asked, the corners of his lips tugging up slightly.

"Maybe. If you play your cards right."

Solas stood with all the grace and poise of a large cat, shoulders back, chest out, and Ellana couldn't help but think (not for the first time) that he didn't move or behave like any apostate she'd ever met before. He paused slightly as he passed by her, drawing a finger along her jawline to cup her chin, lightly raising her head so that she was looking him in the eye. She couldn't stop the way her heart skipped a beat, the instinctive thrill that passed through her body, the way she leaned slightly toward him. "It's a good thing I'm fairly good at cards, then," he whispered.

The sway of his body made her think he was going to kiss her, but then he was gone, disappearing behind the partition to bathe and leaving her standing in place, practically vibrating with desire. _Damn him_.

 

* * *

 

The next three days progressed in a very similar fashion to the first. They awoke before dawn and prepared for their journey, walking and talking and laughing and joking and flirting. There were times the tension was so thick Ellana felt as if she could cut it with one of her daggers. They sometimes rested for lunch and other times kept moving, but every night they camped and shared a tent or shared a room in an inn.

Their meal of wild pheasant and dried fruit was about done, and they had completed their second mental chess game; they were tied one-to-one on wins, but Ellana suspected he'd let her have her victory. The silence was punctuated with the crackle of the fire and only broken by one of them adjusting how they were sitting.

"Our journey to Starkhaven is almost complete," he said, his tone suddenly more serious and sadder than it had been in days. She found herself wistful at the prospect of leaving him, even if she still wasn't entirely sure she could trust him. If he was an Agent of Fen'Harel… was it possible everything she had been told was wrong? Was it possible they weren't all power-hungry monsters? The man she'd come to know didn't seem as if that description fit… but perhaps she was wrong.

"We've a couple more days left," she countered with a shrug.

"What's two days in a lifetime?" he asked. She didn't have a clue how to answer that, so she kept silent. "Gra," he called, the nickname hanging in the air and sounding strange to her. _Red_. He was the only one to have ever given her a nickname. She felt his hand envelope hers, his thumb stroking the back of her hand gently. The gesture should have been soothing, but it made her tense up, made her wary of the fact he could easily take control and overpower her in a fight. What was _wrong_ with her? Why couldn't she simply enjoy things? "No matter what happens in the future-"

"What do you mean?" she interrupted, her free hand protectively moving to cover the Orb. "What could happen? Are you planning-"

"I _meant_ if we parted ways and never saw one another again, but I suppose it could also mean if I die on my next mission, or you on yours, or… whatever happens," he assured her. She relaxed a bit, but found she was still on guard, was still waiting for everything to go horribly awry and him to reveal himself as her enemy. "I was trying to tell you, Gravilathe'lin, you have made my life better, simply by knowing you, even if it's only for this week. You have changed… _everything_."

"How? I don't-"

Solas huffed in frustration, interrupting her deluge of questions. "Before you, I believed the Resistance was resisting… just for the sake of resisting; that perhaps the main Dalish core of the Resistance simply did not want things to change, because change was, historically, not great for your people - or our People's shared ancestors. I thought… perhaps… the Dalish still expected their Creators to show up to save them."

"Then why did you join us?" she snapped.

"Because, regardless of your motives, I believed… I still believe… Fen'Harel should be stopped. Bringing the Veil down will only cause chaos, and-"

"And death and destruction-"

"Yes," he agreed, "and I'm not naive enough to believe the Veil falling will cure everything. I don't believe the benefits will outweigh the costs. But regardless of all of that, you have made me see… the Resistance is much more than some petty resistance to change. It is… fundamentally hope - hope that this version of Thedas can get better, that Our People can do more than survive here, but can also regain their glory; hope that not all is lost." He reached out to tuck a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

Her heart skipped a beat, a thrill traveling down into her smalls at the simple gesture. His fingertips were soft, gentle. She raised her eyes to meet his, the gray-violet color glinting in the firelight. When he spoke again, his voice was barely above a whisper. "You have made me see, Gra, your people are actually more than I gave them credit for. People who I thought were too… set in their ways… too fearful to see what Spirits and the Fade could offer… are capable of so much more. You are wise beyond your years, open to new ideas, and beautiful… so beautiful."

Ellana leaned forward without meaning to, holding her breath. She had never felt… so… alive, so normal, so absolutely desirable. Solas leaned forward, too, but their lips weren't touching. He closed his eyes and sighed softly. "I wish things could be different," he said sadly, and he leaned back away from her, leaving her wanting, and dropping her hand. "We should sleep."

"Y-yes," she agreed shakily.

 

* * *

 

She awoke with a hand over her mouth, heart pounding in her chest, and barely stopped her blade from pressing into Solas' neck. Her eyes were wide as she stared up at him. He placed a finger on his mouth to indicate she should be quiet and then removed his hand from her mouth.

 _Agents of Fen'Harel_ , he signaled. _Five. Southwest._

 _How far?_ She signaled back.

 _Not far_.

She nodded and without hesitation rolled from her bed roll and began rolling it up. Solas' bedroll was already gone and outside the man was already getting rid of the evidence of their campfire. It was dark out and the temperature had dropped over the course of the night; the pre-dawn air was cold and humid. It only took a handful of minutes for them to break down the camp and get on the move.

Her brain was still slightly foggy, and she yawned slightly. "How did you find out about them?" she whispered.

"I saw them in the Fade," Solas replied, "and forced myself awake. I tracked them to their camp to make sure-"

"And… how did you… how were you sure?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. "Were they wearing 'Agents of Fen'Harel' patches?"

She saw his jaw clench out of the corner of her eye, "no. I heard them speaking of tracking us for the Orb. I suppose I am making assumptions, but whether or not they are _His_ agents, they want the Orb."

She nodded, grateful he had managed to detect their enemy before they were on them but upset her sleep had been interrupted and they'd had to get on the road before she'd had a chance to eat.

 

* * *

 

The temperature continued dropping even as the sun came up. The spring air which had been warm and awakening their first few days of travel was now chilled as if the promise of summer was retreating back into hibernation. Her stomach growled loudly and Solas glanced at her. "We should rest," he suggested, and she nodded in agreement. They both checked the horizon in front of and behind of them before sitting where they were at.

She drank deeply of her water skin, wishing beyond all hopes that it was tea or coffee or something which could wake her up, as Solas dug into his backpack for the last of their dried fruit and hardtack. He handed her a handful of fruit and some hardtack, and she began eating quickly as she watched the clouds begin to roll in from the West. "It's going to rain," she observed.

Solas nodded, "we need to find shelter. It's too cold for us to get wet. To do so could very well kill us."

Ellana sighed and stood. She wasn't ready to move, but she could eat on the run. "Let's go, then. The front is moving quickly we don't have time to waste."

 

* * *

 

It was darker than it should be for this early in the afternoon. The clouds had rolled in, darkening the sky and Ellana's mood which was already grim and tense. They'd barely stopped to rest, desperately trying to stay on the move until they could find shelter, but unfortunately, all that met them was wide open plains. They'd spotted a rock outcropping about an hour ago on the horizon and were quickly moving toward it, but the storm was rapidly approaching. The wind had picked up, the bugs and birds had gone silent, the scent of rain was thick in the air. The deluge was going to happen and soon. They wordlessly picked up their pace.

Ellana sensed the movement more than she saw it, five horses moving on them from all directions, and she knew, without a doubt, these were the Agents they'd been attempting to outrun. Without horses, there had been no hope for them. "You didn't mention they had horses," she hissed. She tossed her backpack to the ground and drew her daggers falling into a fighting position. She felt a barrier come to life on her skin mere seconds before an arrow hit it. Next to her, Solas had dropped his pack and fallen into a fighting stance; his staff seemed to glow with power, as did his eyes, his entire body.

 _What the fuck is he_? she thought to herself.

The five agents were on them in minutes, horses abandoned as they dismounted and drew various weapons. The lightning flashed in the sky. "Give us the Orb and we'll let you live," the tallest man proclaimed. He was broader than any elf she'd ever seen, and - to her surprise - was marked with Andruil's vallaslin; his arms were nearly as thick as her head and she wondered what the hell he'd grown up eating.

"Funny, because I was about to tell you that you could have it over my dead body," she growled.

She wasn't sure whether the lightning originated in the sky or whether Solas called it forth, but what she could tell was that he was controlling it as it arced between their attackers. The thunder exploded in her ears, drowning out the crackling of Solas' power, and as his spell died on the air, Ellana was moving.

She went for the large elf first; the man's temporarily stunned status had loosened his grip on his sword, and she kicked it from his hand easily. Her movements were fluid as she took a small running start, wrapped her legs around his shoulder while pulling his arm down, and used her momentum to flip him around with an arm drag. He hit the ground with a gasp for air, the shock of what was happening bringing him back to awareness as she rolled to a crouching position. Ellana's dagger was in his chest before he could recover.

There was another crack of lightning followed so close by thunder there was almost no break. The storm was right over them, and the clouds opened up to pour almost frozen water on them. The darkness provided her cover as she moved from enemy to enemy, stabbing them before they even knew she was there. Solas' magic flared before her - fire and ice and earth erupting around her. She wasn't sure how he was keeping track of her, but he always seemed to miss her and for that she was grateful.

Their mage's barrier flickered, and Ellana dropped to her knees sliding by the woman as she sliced at her knee. The woman's knee buckled, and she went down, screaming in agony. That drew the attention of the mage's companion to her right, who reacted with a knee to Ellana's chest. The blow was more than her armor could cushion for and she gasped for air as her heart skipped a beat. The man's dagger was at her throat a second later, but she managed to swing back barely avoiding it. She felt it scrape against her neck drawing a tiny drop of blood and ducked as the man swung from the other side.

He froze in place, Solas' ice encasing him just as she swept his legs out from under him. The man hit the ground and shattered. As she stood, she realized Solas had managed to take out the other two attackers. Everyone was dead, save the mage who lay wallowing on the ground in agony, but she would join them soon if the blue tint of her lips was any indication.

She wasn't sure what moved her to take the potion from her bag and to cross to the mage who was writhing in pain. She placed it in the woman's hand. "Take this… go back to Fen'Harel and tell him if he wants his Orb, he needs to come for it himself," she snarled.

The woman laughed. "You fool… he already is. He's closer than you think."

"Gravilathe'lin, we need to get to shelter." The voice behind her was firm and comforting. She nodded once, realizing she'd already begun to shiver from the cold rain.


	3. Chapter 3

The cave was small but large enough for the two of them, nestled into a crook of the rock formation where you could almost miss it if you weren't looking for it. By the time they reached it, Ellana was beyond shivering, her teeth were chattering, and she wasn't sure if she could feel her fingers or not. Everything they owned was soaking wet, but Solas had gathered a few branches and used magic to dry them and start a fire.

She huddled close to it, trying to will herself warmer, even as Solas began to pull off his tunic. "You have to undress," he said matter-of-factly, "or else hypothermia will set in." Ellana shook her head stubbornly as she watched the other elf drop layers of clothing into the dirt without care. "Stop it. If you don't undress, you'll die."

Ellana's hand tightened on the strap of her bag, her other hand resting on the Orb within its confines. She could feel a faint heat coming off it, indicative of the power it held. "I'm fine," she whispered through chattering teeth.

"Damn it!" he growled, jerking her to her feet. "Forget the blighted Orb, Gra! Your life is more important than the Orb of Fen'Harel." He unclasped her cloak and let it fall. His fingers were shaking as he began fighting with the clasps of her belt, and she noticed the faintly blue tips and the blueish purple tint to his lips.

"Creators, dammit to the Void," she hissed. For the first time in almost a week, she pulled the satchel over her head and the Orb hit the ground with a loud, metallic _clang_. Her armor was almost too complicated for their fingers to navigate the clasps and buckles but soon, gloriously soon, the freezing wet clothes were off of her. She couldn't seem to stop violently shivering.

She stood by the fire as Solas fought with the bedrolls, using magic to dry and warm them. In moments, they were laid out, as close as they could get to the fire, the warmth from it and the bedrolls helping, but not quite warm enough. Solas pulled her to him wordlessly, naked flesh against naked flesh and she hissed at the warmth. It was almost painful.

"If… you wanted me naked… you could have just asked," she teased through chattering teeth.

"Shut up," Solas said, though there was no anger in his tone. "Your lips are solid blue and I… I can help with magic."

He wrapped an arm around her and suddenly she realized he was actually generating heat, that this was not just normal body warmth. The color had returned to his lips and he was no longer shivering. "Oh," she gasped, and she curled against him, seeking more contact. Without thinking, she pressed her lips to his collarbone; the man froze, holding his breath. She could feel his heartbeat beneath her fingertips, wild and fast with anticipation, the tremor of his muscles as he hung on the edge of control.

She shifted, slid her hand up his chest to his neck, fingers tracing gently against his jawline; their eyes met, and he inhaled softly. It was subtle, the way his eyes slid shut and his chin shifted, his lips parting slightly. Ellana had one terrifying moment where she thought perhaps this wasn't what Solas wanted, that perhaps she'd been reading him wrong, but then their lips met, and Solas finally exhaled. His hand traveled up her back, tangling in her hair and pulling her closer as his tongue plunged into her mouth. She whimpered and he swallowed the sound eagerly. She grabbed his ass, pulling him closer as she ground her hips into him.

He gasped against her lips and began to fill against her stomach, and Ellana couldn't stop herself from moaning at the feeling her own arousal beginning to pool between her legs. She nipped at his lips and spread her legs as his knee pushed them open. The grind of her hips caused her clit to rub against his muscular thigh and her moan deepened. Solas tugged her hair, jerking her head back and causing her hips to jerk roughly. His teeth found her neck and a strange mix of pain and pleasure surged through her body, exploding behind her eyes as he gently bit and suckled a mark above her clavicle.

The nails of her left hand scraped against his scalp while her right hand's nails dug into his ass. She jerked against his thigh, her wetness spreading against his skin uninhibited. "Creators, don't stop," she gasped. He moaned against her throat, and she shifted so she could throw her leg over his waist. His hardness slid between her legs, thick and hot and heavy. A strangled sound escaped him, and he released her hair. He leaned his forehead against hers as he shuddered. Her hand snaked between them and she grasped him shifting to line him up so that he could enter her.

"Ahhhh… Gra… I…" The hand on her back was shaking and it caused her to pause, even though she was desperate to have him inside of her.

"Do you… do you not want…"

"I do," he whimpered. His eyes opened and met hers, their gray-violet coloring nearly hidden with his pupils blown wide with desire. "But it is… inappropriate." He seemed to be forcing himself to say the words, and she frowned.

What could be bringing this hesitation on? "Why?" she whispered. "Are you married?"

He snorted. "No, but you don't know who I really am," he answered. "You wouldn't want this… wouldn't want me… if you knew."

"I don't care," she replied, kissing him gently. "Not now, maybe later. For now, I just want you to fuck me." The sound that left him was desperate as he thrust into her hand. "Is that a yes?" she asked.

He nodded and she shifted slightly; the head of him slipped inside of her and she couldn't stop the half-gasp, half-moan that escaped her. He was larger than any lover she'd had before, and it had been a long time. She shifted, moving her hand up his abs to rest on his chest, and as if it were planned, they moved together, Solas sliding home inside of her roughly.

She gasped against his lips and he against hers, and then they were moving, slow and sensual. His left hand slid up and down her body, his right hand rested on her cheek. She held him close, arms and leg wrapped almost protectively around him, her heel digging into his thigh as she tried to keep him close. It was more intimate than anything she'd ever experienced, their moans and gasps echoing around them, bouncing off the walls of the cave.

The heat built in her stomach slowly as her walls clenched around him; his hand landed firmly on her ass and he pulled her against him harder. A string of Elvhen she didn't understand began to pour forth from him almost reverently, his words almost breathless against her skin. "Ma... ma nea din or em. Ehn ane? Thu unelas tua em nuven latha ma? Ahn sou emas sum em?"[*]

Something about the tone of his voice brought her closer to the edge, and she drug her nails down his back. "Fenedhis!" Solas gasped. The hand on her ass slipped between them, his long fingers rubbing against her clit. She clenched around him and they moaned in unison, pleasure sparking from her cunt all the way up her spine to her skull.

"Solas!" she cried out as his fingers stroked the pleasure from her, his cock driving into her over and over again. She felt Solas lengthen inside of her, impossibly hard, her body tensed, muscles pulling tight as their movements became more erratic. Her nails dug into his ass and she claimed his lips, drowning out their combined moans.

She began shaking without warning, stars exploding behind her eyes, her moans edging closer to screams, as her orgasm exploded deep within. She was only vaguely aware of Solas spilling a moment later, hot and deep inside her.

Ellana became aware of the kisses on her face and neck gradually, of the way Solas was still holding her, of the way her nails still dug into the hard flesh of his ass. It took her a minute to move so that he was no longer inside of her, to unlock her leg from around his waist, to lean herself bonelessly into his embrace. She was warm now, maybe too hot, but she realized it was just their natural body heat; the mage's spell had ended long ago.

The silence hung thick between them and so did Solas' overwhelming sadness. She saw it etched in the subtle expression on his face, the way he couldn't quite look at her, the way he stroked her skin gently. "You should sleep, Gravilathe'lin," he whispered. "If the Agent of Fen'Harel survived, there are sure to be more soon."

She nodded and in moments she had drifted off.

 

* * *

 

The first thing Ellana realized was that her wrists and ankles were bound, the second was that she was still naked, the third was that she was sitting up leaning against the wall of the cave. Her eyes snapped open, heart pounding in her chest, rage and shame filling her. She'd slept through someone tying her up AND moving her. There was no way. Not unless they'd used magic to keep her asleep. Where was Solas?

Her eyes found him in the opposite corner of the cave, barely concealed by shadows. He'd replaced the fire with Veilfire, the sickly blue light made it slightly more difficult to see in the dark. He was fully dressed, the Orb sitting in front of him, watching her closely.

"Probably should have mentioned, I'm not into this kinky shit," she snapped, tugging at her bindings angrily. Solas shifted so that she could see him better and raised a shoulder dismissively. "I suspected you were an Agent of Fen'Harel all along. I never should have let my guard down."

"You suspected wrong," Solas replied darkly.

"And yet, here I am tied up and there you are eying the Orb as if it's a juicy piece of meat for you to sink your teeth into," she countered. She shifted against the ropes, noting that although they were tied tight enough she couldn't slip out of them, he'd seemed to leave them loose enough they wouldn't hurt her. If she could break her hand, though, she might be able to get free. She still had a potion to heal it after her escape

"I didn't say we weren't enemies," the man replied standing easily from his sitting position, "only that I am not an Agent of Fen'Harel."

"Who are you then?"

He laughed and when he turned back, his eyes were glowing white. Ellana instantly regretted asking the question as he took a step closer. The shadows began to move around him, swirling amorphously, as his form began to shift and grow. His face elongated horrifically, his eyes turned red, and his hips shifted, pitching him forward on all fours. Ellana's stomach lurched - she could hear the man's bones and cartilage cracking and breaking - but thankfully it only lasted a few seconds before the man she'd known for nearly a week was replaced by a wolf which could barely be contained in the cave. Four more glowing eyes joined the original two and Ellana could barely contain a gasp.

It didn't make sense to her, that the mild-mannered apostate who'd protected her, who'd helped her, who'd made love to her, could possibly be this monster. She tried to school her face, to stop the horror and fear she felt from reflecting on it, but she was sure he could hear her heart pounding. "So, it was you," she said her voice cracking, "in the woods. What happened to the Resistance member I was supposed to meet?"

"I killed him." The words echoed around her, the weight and power of them magnified by the body they originated from. She looked away unable to continue staring at the horror before her, and by the time she looked back, the wolf was gone, replaced by the man she'd been calling Solas. "A regrettable sacrifice."

She huffed and pulled at her bonds. "Why didn't you just kill me and take the Orb?"

Solas looked away from her to the Orb. His movement was subtle, but the Orb flew to his hand as if it weighed nothing. "Because regardless of the picture your Resistance paints of me, I do not relish in killing. I was hoping to take the Orb when your guard was down, but you are… good at your job. You never let your guard down."

"You don't… you helped me kill five of your Agents!" she shouted, not believing what she was hearing the man say.

He laughed. "They're fine. Well… mostly. The mage wasn't supposed to open her mouth the way she did, and she is currently being held for sentencing. The moment we were far enough away, I revived them all. Simple work for someone with my power." He sat cross-legged in front of her and place the Orb on the ground where he spun it almost playfully. "What precisely was your organization's plan for the Orb? Once you delivered it to Arlathan what were you going to do with it?"

"Destroy it," she answered, although the truth was, she had no idea. Her orders were to retrieve the Orb and deliver it to the Commander at Arlathan. It wasn't her job to know what was going to happen with it after the fact.

He laughed, the sound echoing eerily. "You can't simply destroy a focus, Gravilathe'lin; the amount of power it would take is astronomical, and no one in your organization comes close to having it. Our intelligence showed your Commander planned to open it, to claim the magic for herself - or for someone else in the Resistance; perhaps even you."

"I won't fall for your tricks, Fen'Harel," she snapped.

"My name is Solas. Please continue using it. I like the way it sounds falling from your lips… especially in ecstasy," he taunted.

She flushed and the urge to punch him in his smarmy face was suddenly overwhelming. "To the Void with you!"

"I'd rather not go back there anytime soon," he replied haughtily, and now Ellana was thoroughly done with him. God or not, he was an insufferable asshole, and although she couldn't conceivably get away or hope to hurt him, she could at least irritate him by not playing his stupid game.

"Please just kill me and get it over with; I can't stand your gloating."

Solas flinched as if he'd physically been hit and blinked a couple of times. He seemed to be gathering his resolve before he said softly, "I'm not going to kill you. I don't _want_ to kill you."

"So, what do you want?" she hissed.

He reached out to stop the Orb from spinning and looked at her, his gaze wide and intense. "I don't know," he admitted. "You… you were never part of my plan, Gravilathe'lin."

"Ellana," she corrected. She didn't know if the insane God before her knowing her real name would make a difference, but it probably wouldn't. He was insisting he didn't want to kill her now and to be fair… she wasn't yet dead. Maybe if she could make herself more real to him, she could have a chance of disarming him. "Ellana Deshanna Lavellan. If Solas is your real name, then I can at least give you mine."

He inhaled sharply and his eyes closed; he let out a bitter laugh. "Of course. Of course, you're the Commander's daughter. That's how you were raised in the Resistance." His expression was suddenly weary, and for a brief moment he looked every bit the thousands of years old he must be. He rubbed a hand over his face and exhaled slowly before standing and beginning to pace.

"Yes," she admitted. "My mother is Commander Istimaethoriel." The string of Elvish which followed was incomprehensible, and she couldn't even pick out words she recognized the man spoke so quickly. He was still pacing his speed quickening until he stopped and turned on her suddenly.

"Your mother is the Commander and she sent you on this _suicide_ mission?" he demanded. "Or was the entire thing a trap?"

"If it was a trap, it was a bloody awful one wasn't it?" she yelled up at him. "I'm the one tired up here and going to die."

He crossed to her and squatted down to her level, eyes narrowing dangerously, "please stop saying that. I'm not going to kill you. I couldn't… I…" He looked away from her and Ellana nearly started laughing. The entire situation was absolutely unbelievable, and yet slowly her brain began to put together the pieces… the way he'd touched her so tenderly, the way he looked at her - even now, sad and tortured - his insistence she was in no danger from him. Somehow, some way, this man had _fallen_ for her. He cleared his throat and glanced away from her. "What have they told you will happen when the Veil falls?"

"The world will end," she answered.

"That's… why would I end the world? I'm trying to _save_ it," he argued.

"As much as I'd love to debate Armageddon with you, I'm a bit uncomfortable tied up and naked," she said. "Could… could you at least let me put my pants back on? Allow me to move my legs?"

"Not after what you did to my agent," he said with a laugh.

"I'm unarmed," she countered.

"But not any less dangerous," he answered. She sighed heavily, unable to really dispute the fact.

"So… tell me how - why - tearing down the Veil wouldn't destroy the world."

"Easy," Solas replied as he settled down across from her. "The world existed before the Veil, and the Veil is… my mistake. Removing it will only return the world to the state it should be in."

"And release demons and spirits… and oh yeah, the rest of your mad Evanuris into the world. What are you going to do about that?" she asked.

"Spirits are of no concern. Without the Veil to spawn them, there will be far fewer demons and those that do continue to exist can easily be killed by the Templars and mages in Thedas. The sudden influx of magic to untrained mages may be a concern, but not a large one - accidental magic use without the Veil is much less common. As for the Evanuris… that's why I have an army. We're going to kill them. They'll have been weakened after thousands of years trapped in the Fade," he replied. "I'm not sure why the Resistance believes the Veil coming down will kill everyone; what would be the point in that?"

"Well, you _are_ an evil megalomaniac trickster God," she replied slowly. She hated that what he was saying sounded sincere; although she had to question how he was going to manage to kill Gods he hadn't been able to kill thousands of years ago.

His expression turned sad, almost hurt, and Ellana nearly regretted saying what she'd said. "Do I really seem to be those things to you?" he asked.

"I don't know what to believe, Solas. I… I had almost become convinced I was wrong for suspecting you to be an Agent of Fen'Harel. I had almost become convinced you… cared… for me. But then I woke up naked and tied up."

"Fair enough," he mumbled. He licked his lips and considered what she'd said. She couldn't help but hold her breath. If she could just get him to trust her enough to let her go, she'd be halfway there. "Ellana… if I cut you free… do you promise you won't make me kill you?"

That hadn't exactly been what she'd been expecting, but she would take a small victory. She nodded slowly in agreement, hope springing up that she may be able to salvage her mission. "I promise. I won't go for the Orb; I won't attack; I won't try to run."

He considered her words, she could practically see him weighing them, deciding what to do. With a heavy sigh, he unsheathed the dagger at his waist (her own daggers! the humiliation burned) and carefully cut the rope binding her ankles. He paused as they were free, on guard and wary, and to be fair, Ellana couldn't blame him; for half a second, she considered kicking the knife out of his hand and putting his neck in a figure four hold until she choked him out - but given his power, she would have been dead before she could have managed to get the hold locked.

The tension seemed to relax in his shoulders, and he moved to the pile of her clothing retrieving her small clothes and breeches. "Up," he said. "I'll help you dress."

"If you untie my hands, I can do it myself," she argued defiantly.

"I'm not sure I can trust you enough for that," he replied sadly. "I'm sorry. This is for your own protection."

The sigh which escaped her was heavy. "I just gave you my word-"

"You are a spy, assassin, and thief, and the daughter of the Commander of the Resistance, and I'm just supposed to trust you?" Solas countered sarcastically. "I should have just taken the Orb and left after we-" he seemed to choke on the words, and she noticed his hands were shaking, the slightest tremor that was revealed in the way her breeches moved in the air.

It was awkward for her to stand without the use of her hands, and she ended up having to brace herself against his shoulder for help as he knelt to help her into her small clothes. The action was strangely intimate and although the God attempted to be careful to not touch her, she could still feel a light brush of his knuckles here or there, his breath warm on her thigh as he looked up at her. Her traitorous body responded in a way which was totally inappropriate given the situation.

"I'm sorry for that, by the way," he said softly as he gathered her breeches and she carefully stepped into them. "It was never my intention to… I tried to resist… but I found myself…" The man who had been so eloquent in the days after they'd met was stumbling over his words, and shame and some other emotion she couldn't quite identify causing him to hesitate.

"You tried to tell me," Ellana replied, "and I was fairly persistent that I wouldn't care. True, I thought the worst it could be was that you were an Agent of Fen'Harel and that one of us may end up having to kill the other; I never expected you to be the God himself."

"I'm no God," he argued his hands fumbling over the laces of her breeches. He managed to knot it and tuck the laces, before backing up and sitting down. "I've only ever been a man."

"You know what I mean," she mumbled, and he nodded in acquiescence. She backed against the wall of the cave, slowly sliding down it for support as she sat. "My point is, I still don't care. What happened is in the past. Right now, I'm only concerned about the future… and if I will have one."

Solas sighed heavily. "How many times do I have to tell you I'm not going to kill you?"

"I believe that. I just don't understand why. And I'm not sure I believe what you're saying about tearing down the Veil."

He laughed bitterly. "It's irrelevant, Ellana. I thought perhaps… I thought perhaps if you heard the truth rather than the propaganda your mother has been feeding you since birth that maybe… _maybe_ … I could get you to join me. I see now it's fruitless. I just don't know what to do about that. Killing you isn't an option, neither is leaving you here to die - although you are resourceful enough, I'm sure you will eventually get out of that knot and find your way to civilization."

"So… why don't you tell me the truth?" she asked. "Tell me about Elvhenan before the Veil; tell me how we got here."

Solas sighed deeply, his brow furrowed as he tried to see through her closely guarded expression. "Very well, then," he said softly.

And so, he did.

 

* * *

 

Solas spoke for hours about Elvhenan; he spoke of the village where he grew up, about how his first friends were Spirits rather than other children. He spoke about how he eventually left to learn more magic and how he found himself in Mythal's service. He painted a picture, not of the near-utopia she'd been raised to believe in, but in a place so imperfect and real that Ellana couldn't help but believe him - even though he was supposed to be the trickster God. He told her of wars and peace, of petty squabbles, and grand discourse spanning years and topics so complex the brightest of scholars struggled with them. He spoke of slavery and of his struggles against it. He told her stories of the Evanuris which made her blood curdle and her stomach churn with hate.

And yet, he spoke so fondly of the past - its easy access to magic and knowledge and the power and wealth held by elves - that Ellana almost wanted to see it. He told her that her techniques as an assassin were an ancient form of magic, she didn't even realize she was using, and that if the Veil fell, he could show her so much more. He promised she could become immortal, drawing energy from the Beyond to fuel a long life.

He only paused to give them both water, to help her to the bathroom, and eventually to feed them both. She'd initially refused to eat, but when he'd angrily bit off the same piece of meat he'd been offering her and chewed and swallowed it, she'd finally given in, figuring that if he'd wanted to kill her, poison would have been beneath him. And finally, eventually, he'd cut her hands free and allowed her to pull on a tunic when she'd become cold.

She was stretching her aching arms and found herself relishing in the ability to run her hands through her hair and simply reach for things. She wasn't sure how she'd won him over, if she told the truth, none of her training had seemed to be useful; he seemed to suspect every technique she'd try to throw at him. She'd finally given in to listening to what he was saying and asking genuine questions. It had put him at ease and slowly he'd begun to relax around her again.

But now here they were, she was free, but she couldn't leave, not without trying to take the Orb with her, and he couldn't let her go. He also refused to kill her. They sat in silence, close to the newly built fire since the temperatures had dropped and veilfire didn't produce heat, the Orb between them both. She cleared her throat, her fingers playing with the hem of her tunic. "What… what now?" she asked.

"I don't know," he answered softly. "I could simply open the Orb and tear down the Veil."

"And why haven't you? All the things you said about Fen'Harel needing to be stopped… does part of you believe that?"

"The Veil is an abomination," he answered quickly. "It needs to be removed, but I'm not sure Thedas is prepared for it, and I…" He stopped abruptly and shook his head, stamping down the words.

"Solas?" she asked softly. "What is it?"

"I wasn't lying when I said you had changed _everything_ ," he answered. "I very nearly delivered you to Starkhaven so that you could take the Orb to the Resistance. I couldn't bear for you to hate me."

"What stopped you?"

"The fact our intelligence led me to believe your mother intends on opening the Orb," Solas answered. "There is no one other than I who can take the Anchor and live." Ellana frowned. She had no idea what Solas was talking about - both with what his Agent's intelligence said or the bit about the Anchor. "Opening the Orb won't tear down the Veil. It is simply one step in the process. Once it is open, the power will Anchor itself to someone, and it could kill them, if not immediately then over time. Our intelligence strongly suggested the Commander intended either for herself or for you to take the Anchor."

"Why would she _do_ that?" Ellana asked. "The Commander has no reason to want the ability to take down the Veil."

"Unless she believes it will stop me from succeeding. It won't, by the way," Solas stated.

"So, we're at a stalemate, still," she concluded. "You can't give me the Orb; I can't let you have it. You don't want to kill me; I can't kill you." He nodded in agreement with her assessment of the situation. The silence stretched out between them. "The Orb isn't going anywhere. Let's get some sleep."

 

* * *

 

It took them both hours to finally nod off into a fitful sleep; every movement, every noise caused Ellana to bolt awake and the same for Solas. They'd started off sleeping on opposite sides of the cave, and eventually moved their bedrolls close enough they could practically touch so that whenever their eyes popped open, they could see the other person quickly and clearly; it was the only hope they had of getting any sleep at all.

She was still trying to formulate a plan. Although she eventually believed _most_ of what Solas had told her, even down to the intelligence he was given about the Commander's planned use for the Orb, she didn't believe that was actually going to happen. Her goal, therefore, was still to get the Orb away from Fen'Harel and to the Resistance in Arlathan.

In the early hours of the morning, as she watched him sleep, Ellana latched on to one small strand of hope; the fact it seemed the man had developed _feelings_ for her, no matter how twisted and complicated they were. He didn't want to kill her, he'd regretted sleeping with her, he didn't want her to hate him; these were all things she could work with.

His eyes opened slowly as she watched him, gray-violet slightly foggy with sleep as he caught her watching him and smiling. "I know what we need to do," she said softly. "Good morning, by the way."

He blinked at her and barely stifled a yawn. "Morning," he replied. "And what is that?"

"I've been thinking about what you said, and I agree. The Veil should come down, but Thedas isn't ready," she reached out tentatively to cup his cheek, her thumb rubbing at the prominent bone tenderly. "We have to make it ready," she whispered.

Solas inhaled sharply, his eyes closing as if he couldn't quite believe what he was hearing. For half a minute, he seemed to be weighing her words, and then he nodded, his eyes opening slowly. "Yes," he agreed. He leaned into her hand, and she leaned forward slowly.

"Solas," she said softly, her lips brushing against his as she spoke. "I don't… I don't know why… but I can't… stop…"

His hand moved her wrist and he jerked her hand away from his face, backing away from her roughly. "Don't," he choked out. "Not now. It isn't appropriate. We should give it more time."

"What's the harm in one little kiss?" Ellana asked, biting her bottom lip and looking up at him in what she sincerely hoped was a sultry manner. It must have worked because he swayed forward subtly, and she claimed his lips fiercely before he could stop her. The sound that left him was desperate and pained, but he dropped her hand in favor of grabbing her ass to pull her closer.

She couldn't help the little triumphant thrill that ran through her when she realized she'd read him right and she was now in control of the situation precisely the way she wanted to be. She grinned into the kiss, threw a leg over his waist and shifted their weight, forcing him onto his back as she straddled him. "Ellana!" he gasped against her lips, and she kissed him again, trying to prevent him from doing something stupid like stopping her again.

She didn’t have to worry because he pushed up into her eagerly, his dick hardening between them. She wasn't prepared for her own body to react so excitedly, though, and was barely able to stop the moan that escaped her when she felt him rub against her clit. She wasn't expecting him to take that moment to regain the upper hand and she hit the ground flat on her back stiffly, the impact causing her to go breathless. In an instant, his lips and tongue and teeth were on her neck sucking a mark to match the one from the day prior on the other side. She arched into him, the whimper leaving her unintentional as he shoved his thigh between her legs. "Solas," she moaned, shame causing her face to flush. It was one thing to pretend to want him, another thing entirely to discover she actually still did.

Shoving the thought from her mind, she unlaced his breeches, fingers trembling. She shoved his breeches down awkwardly and she wrapped her hand around him giving him a squeeze. The growl that left him was involuntary and the instant her hand relaxed around him, she found herself flipped over on her hands and knees. Solas barely managed to loosen the tie on her own breeches before he eagerly shoved them down her thighs and entered her roughly from behind.

Ellana was almost surprised he didn't howl as he entered her; as it was the sound that escaped her was nearly feral, somewhere between a growl and a moan. He bent over her, nipped at her ear, and whispered hotly, "that's it, vhenan, don't hold back; let me hear your pleasure." She whimpered, rocking against him almost involuntarily, her hands grasping at the bedroll.

He pushed into her gently, the length of him pressing deep, the width of him stretching her, and she moaned softly. He shifted away, straightening up, and she felt the air on her ass as he shoved the hem of her tunic up. She could almost feel him watching as his cock moved in and out of her slowly; his hand landing on her ass with a loud _crack_ drove the imagery from her mind and she jerked against him with a shout. He picked up his pace then, driving into her roughly, forcing high-pitched moans from her.

This was so unlike their first time, Ellana's heart was beating wildly in her chest, and she briefly wondered if she'd severely misjudged the man who was fucking. She was pulled from her thoughts as his fingers found her clit, and the sudden stimulation had her clenching around him. The pleasure built in her quickly, the delicious heat and tightness building in her as she slammed back against him, and suddenly her pleasure exploded outward, the scream escaping her unbidden.

He drove into her through her orgasm, drawing her pleasure out until she couldn't take any more; he spilled in her a moment later, his arm wrapping around her to keep her steady. Her limbs were like rubber as he moved in her slowly, the aftershocks still causing both of them to shake randomly as he kissed behind her ear. He pulled from her and let her down gently, collapsing next to her with a huff.

She rolled over, wrapping herself around him, her hand resting on his chest gently. She couldn't stop herself from pressing a kiss to his jawline. His arm wrapped around her, his lips turning up in a smile which she couldn't help but find endearing. _Shit_.

He took a deep breath and pulled her closer, his eyes sliding closed. Within minutes his breathing was even and deep, and as Ellana moved away from him, he didn't stir. It was now or never.

 

* * *

 

She very nearly felt guilty as her dagger slid into the kidney of Fen'Harel's agent, the second one sliding across the other woman’s throat. The body dropped nearly silently in the alleyway in Starkhaven, and she slipped back into the flow of traffic unnoticed as she pulled the hood of her cloak up. There were lots of things she very nearly felt guilty for, her conscience reminded her, as she made her way to her rendezvous point.

Ellana moved easier now, without the weight of the Orb to hold her back, and she'd made good time after she'd gotten far enough from the cave to trigger its opening. She'd been afraid, at first, it would simply kill her as Solas had warned her it might, but her instinct had pushed her to try. When it had opened, she'd been ripped into the Fade for just a moment and found Solas watching her with a horrified expression on his face.

_"Ellana, why?" he'd asked. "It will… it will kill you."_

_"I don't trust either of you to have it. I'm going to find out exactly what her plan was… and then… then I'll decide."_

_"Don't do this. It's not too late, I can take the Anchor from you. I can prevent it from doing too much damage. Come back."_

_"If you want to save me… then come for me yourself."_

The Anchor pulsed and flared at the memory, the pain enough to cause her to flinch and gasp aloud. She willed it back down to the dull ache which had become her constant companion.

She slipped into the tavern which was her rendezvous point and took a seat in a corner watching for anyone who might possibly be her contact. She took a drink of the ale she'd ordered and, for the first time in two days, relaxed. As soon as her contact arrived, she would be back on the road to Arlathan. In a few weeks, she would confront her mother about what her plan for the Orb _had_ been. In the meantime, the Big Bad Wolf could come for her… and this time, she'd be prepared.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _Ma... ma nea din or em. Ehn ane? Thu unelas tua em nuven latha ma? Ahn sou emas sum em?_ \- You... you will be the death of me. Who are you? How could you make me want love you? What power do you have over me? [*]


End file.
